The Great Cuban Adventure

The Great Cuban Adventure began during the dance years...  I began traveling Internationally in 2000 and haven’t stopped.  To date, I have visited 17 countries!  In 2001 I took my dancing skills on the road.  My first stop was at a Club Med in Mexico and then I traveled to Cuba with the same company in 2002.  I met a Cuban guy who eventually became my husband in 2004.  That relationship ended in 2014, but my connection to Cuba did not.  Sometimes you witness things in life that you cannot ignore.  

In 2016, I Implemented grassroots community outreach and engagement plans to reach vulnerable communities in Cuba.  I started by raising enough money to give out 7 small grants to small business owners in Cuba.  From there, I partnered with a Cuban College student and we started Ultimate Cuban Connection.  We set up a small clothing store in Cuba for the college students, created online fundraising campaigns to attract travelers to Cuba and organized 3 separate “Giving Trips” to Cuba between 2016 and 2020.  In 2021, that Cuban College Student and I worked together to get both she and her new husband out of Cuba.  

Once they arrived in the US, our focus shifted, and once again I find myself in the role of mentor and advisor as she is formulating her dream of giving back to her homeland.